In life, we constantly look up to celebrities/fictional characters/anyone-you-love to ameliorate oneself. Be it in lifestyle, personal style, career or even our daily choices, having a role model in our lives could often alleviate us from the difficult times we are perpetually confined with. I look up to Carrie Bradshaw (fictional, though portrayed marvellously by Sarah Jessica Parker) in terms of her personal attitude and love for Manhattan (no pun intended for the 'man' portion), Leandra Medine for her writing and style, Ellen DeGeneres for her incessant humor that never seem to die out despite after twelve seasons (and still counting) and all the Parisians out there because I am inherently (and secretly) a Parisian.
Having role models to look upon doesn't necessarily mean that you're not being yourself. It simply acts as a cushion for you to fall back on in times of doubt. I replay Sex and the City constantly to get writing and question inspirations from Carrie. I constantly type in 'manrepeller.com' in my search bar when I'm feeling uninspired for my next ootd. I watch Ellen just to listen to her crack jokes in order to stimulate life and joy in me. I read 'How to be a Parisian Whenever You Are' whenever I feel like my Parisian self is slipping away.
Not only that, having inspirational high profile individuals to admire also shows how one could be inspired by so many others and eventually metamorphose into a collective and compounding role model ready to be transpired to the subsequent generation. We are not escaping from reality and losing ourselves; in contrary, we are actually searching for ourselves. We are simply looking out for a stepping stone - a guidance - to discover (and perhaps accept) who we truly are.
Yet, I have not comprehended the fact that I was never able to successfully sartorially emulate Jenna Lyons. She is my preceding style icon, that feathered maxi skirt paired with a mandarin button down and a mink coat (second image) is a look that made me screenshot it in my iPhone and consistently flash it to everyone who walked past me. Not to forget that she could pull off a suit effortlessly on Tuesday (forth image), and then don in a sequinned maxi skirt with a pullover over a shirt (fifth look) on the next.
And as I scroll through numerous amount of times (of an approximate 639301845) at Jenna Lyons ootds (and counting), I couldn't help but wonder: Are we fashion victims emulating our style icons or are we simply inherent fashionistas seeking for inspirations? To be honest, I feel like I oscillate between both. Her feathered top paired with tailored trousers and semi combat booties (third look) is something I aspire to emulate, whilst her t-shirt meets trousers, cross body bag and coat over shoulders (seventh look) is something that I've tried, yet still constantly doing some
It eventually boils down to these three looks that I would totally emulate Jenna Lyons for. In any way, there isn't any harm to what we are doing, is there? If Rihanna has a doppelgänger (Andele Lara), why can't we be our role models' lookalikes?
Images from man repeller and the fashionable wife